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Orioles decline to use the red string

Some cool temperatures befell the scurs, making them wonder what got into the Weather Eye. Will our September/October preview continue or are we slated for some summer yet? Starting Wednesday, partly sunny with a moderate chance of evening showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70’s with lows in the low 60’s. Thursday, partly sunny with a modest chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Partly sunny on Friday with a modest chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Saturday, partly sunny with a modest chance of daytime showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Mostly sunny on Sunday with highs in the mid-70’s and lows in the upper 50’s. Monday, partly sunny and warmer with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70’s with lows in the low 60’s. Partly cloudy and warmer on Tuesday with increasing chances of developing evening thundershowers. Highs in the low 80’s with lows in the low 60’s. On the 15th, we slide below 14 hours of daylight. The normal high for August 15th is 81 and the normal low is 60. The scurs have a week off between county fairs to relax by the cement pond.

In terms of crop progress, some beneficial rainfall this past week again, but a major cooldown is sending some chills down some spines. Fortunately, we had some GDU’s in our back pocket, although continued cool weather could put us behind eventually if it doesn’t turn around soon. Solar radiation could be an intangible however with plenty of that as of late. Corn has begun reaching the dough stage in some of the early planted early maturing hybrids. Continued rainfall has allowed ears to fill to the tips thus far. The cooler temps don’t hurt in maintaining that presently. Soybeans pushed ahead in spite of the cool late week temperatures. Some of the soybeans are R5, which means they have beans in the pods 1/8” long or longer at one of the uppermost four nodes with a fully expanded trifoliate. Soybean aphids continued to be present last week, although the levels in most fields remained well below the threshold of 250 per plant with 80% of the plants being infested.

Vista’s noted Swedish astronomer dropped off some info from the Steele Co. Astronomical Society stating the Perseid Meteor shower will peak Aug. 11th and 12th this year. The best time to look for them will be from 11 p.m. to dawn. The brightness of the moon may wash out the viewing somewhat, although since the meteor are spread across the sky, there will be plenty of opportunity to see them. Hopefully we can get the noted Swedish astronomer’s take by next week on the upcoming solar eclipse on the 21st. He does have an awfully ambitious schedule to maintain.

Finally the weather cooperated to the point that Ruby and I could mow the bulk of the lawn over a two-day period. It involved a lot of tire biting and barking on her part. Saturday rained me out after getting the portion north of the driveway done and right in front of the house. Sunday it rained in the forenoon and after thinking it could be a nap day, decided there was a chance to knock out the main portion on the house side of the driveway. Once Ruby and I did that we looked at the radar and determined we might get the backyard done that was long overdue. She’s been somewhat standoffish about following the mower. Apparently she must’ve caught a stone or stick that the mower winged her direction. That’s alright. She doesn’t have to use extra detergent on her white socks that way.

The fall garden planted last weekend has already sprung to life. Last Thursday I could start to see the radishes I’d planted and by Sunday I could row them. The greens were also dotting the area where I’d seeded them in blocks and a few of the snap peas were beginning to emerge. Fingers crossed as a fall garden is a gamble yet when it comes through, it’s worth the time and effort. The rest of the garden is coming along even though the stretch of cool weather makes me wonder how many of the vine crops will come to fruition. We are getting some salad-type tomatoes now and there were some yellow crook neck squash that are wonderful on the grill. The string beans are also not far behind with some being sampled for quality control purposes. All is not lost.

This year’s bird hatch continues to present itself wherever one goes around the area. Coming out of a soybean field not long ago I saw a kingbird adult on wire feeding its offspring. It flew to the ground, grabbed a grasshopper and went back to the perch and put the insect in the waiting youngster’s mouth, then repeated the process. Five sandhill cranes flew overhead as I was heading to the barn for chores the other night. Not positive, but am relatively sure that there were some nesting in the wetland area. The young orioles continue to gobble jelly, although there appear to be fewer adults. We did have Baltimore orioles nesting in the ash tree this spring. I spied something odd in the lawn after a recent windy spell and went over to investigate. Sure enough it was an oriole nest, a true weaving masterpiece. It was particularly interesting to determine the source of the materials used in the construction of the nest. There was wool, coarse dog hair, some baler twine fiber, as well as some of the white string from the feed sacks I’d cut into lengths for them. They did not use the red string. Obviously did not want to be identified as Republicans.

This past week saw some major changes at the ranch. I was almost floored when I picked up the Waseca Co. Shopper to see a new blue plastic box slid inside the old one. The old one had perhaps seen its better days as it was there since we moved in back in 1985. The snow plows hadn’t treated it kindly, although between various nails, screws and finally a bale twine, it was accessible. I do kinda enjoy getting the thing as well as the circulars. Sure, I could look the stuff up online, but there’s something to be said for plopping down in your easy chair in front of the TV and multi-tasking before nodding off. We also had a new yard light installed this past week. We’d been having trouble with the sodium vapor light from the REC and due to some rule changes, we had our electrician, Ten Eye Ta Ta, install an LED light in its place. It’s a very adequate replacement. Afraid though with all the drastic changes the neighbors will start to talk. Oh well, at least we’re good for something.